Lawrence Tierney

A one-time model with a long rap sheet of less-than-ideal behavior, character actor Lawrence Tierney nevertheless managed to amass scores of film credits over a five-decade acting career before he passed away in 2002. Born in Brooklyn, NY, five years before actor/ brother Scott Brady, Tierney excelled in high school track, winning a scholarship to Manhattan College. Rather than stay in school, however, Tierney dropped out and became an itinerant laborer before his looks brought him a job as a catalogue model. In the early '40s, Tierney began acting in theater and was subsequently signed by RKO. Strengthening his skills with supporting roles in such films as Val Lewton's moody thriller The Ghost Ship (1943) and early teen drama Youth Runs Wild (1944), Tierney sealed his fame, and his image, with his performance as the eponymous gangster in the superb B-picture Dillinger (1945). Cashing in on Dillinger's success, RKO slotted Tierney into numerous tough guy roles, including two turns as archetypal Western outlaw Jesse James in Badman's Territory (1946) and Best of the Badmen (1950), a murderer in cult noir Born to Kill (1947), a sociopath in The Devil Thumbs a Ride (1947), and a career criminal in The Hoodlum (1951). His B-movie stardom also garnered Tierney a typically villainous role in Cecil B. De Mille's Oscar-winner The Greatest Show on Earth (1952). Tierney became just as well known in this period, though, for his offscreen exploits involving copious booze and physical violence. Tierney was such a regular in the Los Angeles jail that cops assured fellow RKO star and hell-raiser Robert Mitchum after his famous 1948 drug arrest, "We're keeping Lawrence Tierney's cell warm for ya." By the mid-'50s, Tierney's roles were becoming smaller and scarcer. His professional situation unchanged despite appearing in John Cassavetes' praised mental hospital drama A Child Is Waiting (1963), Tierney moved to Europe but he continued to get in trouble with the law. After he returned to New York in the late '60s, Tierney supported himself with a variety of jobs, including bartending, and maintained his pugnacious, drunken ways; he was stabbed in a brawl in 1973 and questioned in connection with a woman's suicide in 1975. Still, Tierney managed to score the occasional acting gig, appearing in Otto Preminger's Such Good Friends (1971), Andy Warhol's Bad (1977), and the blockbuster comedy Arthur (1981). Dry by 1983, Tierney returned to Hollywood to resurrect his career in earnest, and soon landed regular work on TV as well as in movies. Along with a role on NBC's Hill Street Blues, Tierney also appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation and played a sheriff in the TV movie Dillinger (1991). On film, Tierney was as comfortable in John Sayles' thoughtful drama City of Hope (1991) as in John Huston's esteemed Mafia black comedy Prizzi's Honor (1985) and the tastelessly hilarious The Naked Gun (1988); he drew attention for his vigorous turn as Ryan O'Neal's alcoholic father in Tough Guys Don't Dance (1987). Tierney's most memorable late-career performance, however, was his no-nonsense, dryly funny criminal mastermind Joe Cabot in Quentin Tarantino's heist film Reservoir Dogs (1992). His longevity assured by Dogs, Tierney remained active into the late '90s, appearing in the Arnold Schwarzenegger comedy Junior (1994) and stylish Tarantino rip-off 2 Days in the Valley (1996), as well as playing Joey Buttafuoco's father in the TV yarn Casualties of Love: The "Long Island Lolita" Story (1993). Following the crime drama Southie (1998) and playing hard-nosed oil driller Bruce Willis' gruff father in Armageddon (1998), Tierney's health began to fail. He died in his sleep in February 2002.

Then one day she meets this John Holmes motherfucker and it's like, whoa baby, I mean this cat is like Charles Bronson in "The Great Escape", he's digging tunnels. Now, she's gettin' the serious dick action and she's feeling something she ain't felt since forever. Pain. Pain.

Joe Cabot

Chew? Toby Chew?

Mr. Blonde/Vic Vega

It hurts her. It shouldn't hurt her, you know, her pussy should be Bubble Yum by now, but when this cat fucks her it hurts. It hurts just like it did the first time. You see the pain is reminding a fuck machine what it once was like to be a virgin. Hence - "Like a Virgin".

No way, no way. I tried it once and it doesn't work. You get four guys, all fighting over who is going to be Mr. Black. But they don't know each other, so no one wants to back down. No way! I pick! You're Mr. Pink. Be thankful you're not Mr. Yellow.

Mr. Brown

Yeah, but Mr. Brown, that's a little too close to Mr. Shit.

Mr. Pink

And Mr. Pink sounds like Mr. Pussy! How about Mr. Purple? That sounds good to me, I'll be Mr. Purple.

Joe Cabot

You're not Mr. Purple. Some guy on some other job is Mr. Purple! You're Mr. Pink!

Mr. White/Larry

Who cares what your name is?

Mr. Pink

Yeah, that's easy for you to say: you're Mr. White. You have a cool sounding name. Look if it's no big deal for you to be Mr. Pink you wanna trade?

Joe Cabot

Hey, nobody's trading with anybody. This ain't a goddamn city counsel meeting you know. Now listen up Mr. Pink. There is two ways you can go on the job: my way or the highway. Now what's it gonna be Mr. Pink?

You have no idea what you're talking about. These people bust their ass. This is a hard job.

Mr. White

You have no idea what you're talking about. These people bust their ass. This is a hard job.

Mr. Pink

So is working at McDonalds but you don't feel the need to tip them do you? Why not? They're serving you food but no society says "no", don't tip these guys over there but tip these guys over here. Thats bullshit

Mr. Pink

So is working at McDonalds but you don't feel the need to tip them do you? Why not? They're serving you food but no society says 'no', don't tip these guys over there but tip these guys over here. Thats bullshit.

Joe Cabot

Waitressing is the number one job for female non-college graduates. Its the one job basically any woman can get and make a living on. Reason is because of tips.

Mr. White

Waitressing is the number one job for female non-college graduates. Its the one job basically any woman can get and make a living on. Reason is because of tips.

Mr. Pink

Fuck all that.

Mr. White/Larry

Give me that fucking thing

Mr. White/Larry

Give me that fucking thing.

Joe Cabot

Hey what the hell do you think your'e dong?

Mr. White/Larry

I sick of fucking hearing it I'll give it back when we leave

Mr. White/Larry

I'm sick of fucking hearing it. I'll give it back when we leave.

Joe Cabot

What do you mean when we leave? Give it back to me now

Joe Cabot

What do you mean when we leave? Give it back to me now.

Mr. White/Larry

For the past 15 minutes you have been droing on about names Toby Toby Toby Toby Wong Toby Wong Toby Wong Toby Chung fucking Charlie Chan I've got Maddonna's big dick coming out of my left ear and Toby the Jap I-don't-know-what coming out of my right

Mr. White/Larry

For the past fifteen minutes, you've been droning on about names. Toby. Toby? [flips pages in book]